Convertible box



1963 E. M. LAPHAM 3,110,398

CONVERTIBLE BOX Filed July 27, 1961 IN VEN TOR. ELLA M. LAPHAM A TTORNEY8 United States Patent 3,110,393 CGNVERTBLE 30X Ella M. Lapham, 3927 S.Las Fiores Canyon Road, Malibu, Calif. Filed July 27, 1961, Ser. No.127,361 2 Claims. (Cl. 206-45) This invention relates generally toconvertible box structures and more particularly to a novel boxstructure serving as a container for various articles and convertibleinto a multi-compartinented structure defining diiierent shelf levelsfor conveniently storing the articles.

There are many articles to which ready access is desirable, particularlyas used in the home such as different spice boxes, cosmetic bottles,etc. Generally, a kitchen cabinet or conventional type shelving is morethan adequate in height and area to accommodate articles of this type.However, when a large number of such articles are stored, some becomepushed behind others and thus are not accessible. The problem may beovercome by constructing intermediate shelves of half-heights so thatbottles or small containers ordinarily concealed behind other bottles orcontainers may be placed on the half-height shelves to be readilyaccessible. Such a solution, however, requires the obtaining of shelfmaterial and actual construction of the auxiliary shelves.

With the foregoing in mind, it is a primary object of this inventionprovide a novel convertible box which serves the dual function ofstoring various articles for shipping and also, by a simple convertingprocess, provides multi-leveled shelves for supporting the articles onconventional shelves in readily accessible positions.

Briefly, this object is achieved by providing a convertible boxincluding a cover having four sidewalls and a container having foursidewalls dimensioned to be nested within the sidewalls of the coverwhen the cover is positioned over the container to ship or otherwisestore various articles in the same manner as in a conventional box. Inaccordance with an important feature of the invention, adjacentsidewalls of the cover are provided with slots running normally to thetop surface of the cover. The floor of the container in turn is alsoprovided with a pair of slots defining a general L-shape. The floorslots of the container are dimensioned to receive the sidewall portionsbetween the cover slots after the cover has been removed and thecontainer portion turned over or inverted. The resulting assemblydefines a multi-compartmen-ted container which, when stood on one of thesidewalls opposite the adjacent sidewalls of the cover, definemultileveled shelves for supporting the various articles.

A better understanding of the invention will be had by referring to apreferred embodiment thereof as illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the convertiblebox of this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a rear View of the cover and container portions of the boxin assembled relationship;

FIGURE 3 is a front elevational view of the structure illustrated inFIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 4 is another front elevational view illustrating one manner inwhich the box may be employed for supporting various articles.

Referring first to FIGURE 1, the convertible box comprises a cover it)and a container 11. The cover includes four sidewalls as shown, twoadjacent sidewalls i2 and 13 being provided with cover slots 14 and 15centrally cut in the sidewalls and extending normally from the topsurface 16 of the cover. As shown, the slots terminate at the edges ofthe adjacent sidewalls.

The container 11 is shown in an inverted or upside down position, thefloor 17 being provided with slots 18 ice and 19 extending inwardly fromadjacent sidewalls 2t) and 21 to intersect at the central area of thefloor. The slots 18 and i9 define a general L-shape. The initialstarting points for these slots at the adjacent sidewalls 2i and 21 ofthe container portion 11 are designated 20' and 21, respectively. Thestraight line distance between these initial starting points is shown bythe dimension D. This distance is equal to the distance between thecover slots 14 and 15 also designated by the letter D. With thisarrangement, the sidewall portions between the corner 22 and the slots14 and 15 define tabs 23 and 24 respectively receivable within the slots18 and 19 in the floor 17 of the container when the cover is movedtowards the bottom or floor of the container.

When the cover it) has its tab portions inserted within the slots 18 and19 as described, the assembled structure will appear as shown in FIGURE2.

If now the entire assembly is inverted or rotated about a horizontalaxis so as to view the front, the structure will appear as shown inFIGURE 3 wherein multiple compartments are defined.

Referring now to FIGURE 4, the cover and container portions 1i) and 11are in the same assembled relationship as illustrated in FIGURE 3 andare shown disposed on a shelf 25. A sidewall opposite to one of theadjacent sidewalls of the cover serves as a stand (for the structure.The right hand sidewall of the container 11 as viewed in FIGURE 4 inturn rests flush against the vertical side 26 for the shelf 25. Theshelf 25 and ventical side or jamb 26 may constitute a portion of aconventional kitchen cabinet or medicine chest. With the box structurepositioned as shown, various articles such as spice containers orcosmetic bottles 27 may be stored. Taller bottles or containers such asindicated at 28 and 29 may be positioned in the vertically largercompartmented areas so that several diiierent sized items may beaccommodated.

As indicated by the dashed horizontal lines in FIGURE 4, the boxstructure in the condition illustrated defines essentially four shelvesor levels upon which articles may be placed. These levels are indicatedby the letters a, b, c, and d.

In the particular embodiment chosen for illustrative purposes, the coverand container structures of the box are substantially squareconstituting a special case of a rectangle. It will be understood,however, that the structure may take the form of elongated rectangles orother equivalent shaped boxes. Further, it will be appreciated that theslots need not be cut at the mid-portions of the sidewalls for the coveror initiate at the mid-portions of the floor sides for the container butmay be varied as desired to define shelves of different levels and area.It should also be understood, of course, that the slots in the containercould be formed in the top surface of the cover and the slots in thesidewalls of the cover formed in the sidewalls of the container so thatthe cover and container are effectively reversed. The terminology ofcover and container as used herein and in the claims may thus beinterchanged.

It will be apparent, accordingly, that various modifications and changesmay be efiected without departing from the scope and spirit of theinvention. The convertible box is therefore not to be thought of aslimited to the one embodiment set forth merely for illustrativepurposes.

What is claimed is:

1. A convertible box comprising, in combination: a rectangular coverhaving four sidewalls; and a rectangular container having four sidewallsadapted to be nested with the sidewalls of said cover when said cover ispositioned to close said container, cover slot means comprising twoslots cut respectively in adjacent sidewalls of said cover so that saidsidewall portions of said cover include a corner, the floor of saidcontainer including an L-shaped slot aliases means dimensioned toreceive the sidewall portions of said cover between said two slots whensaid cover is removed and said container is turned over, whereby aplurality of separate compartments are defined by said cover andcontainer.

2. A convertible box comprising, in combination: a rectangular coverhaving four sidewalls; and a rectangular container having four sidewallsadapted to be nested with the sidewalls of said cover when said cover ispositioned to close said container, two adjacent sidewalls of said coverhaving central cover slots running in a normal direction from the topsurface of said cover and terminating at the edges of said adjacentsidewalls, the floor of said container having two container slotsrunning normally from central points on adjacent sidewalls of saidcontainer to terminate at a common intersection point in the middle areaof said floor, the distance between said cover slots being substantiallyequal to the distance between the starting points of said containerslots, whereby said cover may be removed, said container turned over,and the side tabs defined between said cover slots and the common cornerof said first mentioned adjacent sidewalls inserted within saidcontainer slots respectively to define a compound container structuredefining four shelf levels hen said cover is positioned to stand onasidewall opposite one of said first mentioned adjacent sidewalls.

References ited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,860,309 Davidson May 24, 1932

1. A CONVERTIBLE BOX COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION: A RECTANGULAR COVERHAVING FOUR SIDEWALLS; AND A RECTANGULAR CONTAINER HAVING FOUR SIDEWALLSADAPTED TO BE NESTED WITH THE SIDEWALLS OF SAID COVER WHEN SAID COVER ISPOSITIONED TO CLOSE SAID CONTAINER, COVER SLOT MEANS COMPRISING TWOSLOTS CUT RESPECTIVELY IN ADJACENT SIDEWALLS OF SAID COVER SO THAT SAIDSIDEWALL PORTIONS OF SAID COVER INLCUDE A CORNER, THE FLOOR OF SAIDCONTAINER INCLUDING AN L-SHAPED SLOT MEANS DIMENSIONED TO RECEIVE THESIDEWALL PORTIONS OF SAID COVER BETWEEN SAID TWO SLOTS WHEN SAID COVERIS RE-